Nesbo is one of my favorites and The Bat does a lot to fill in Harry Hole's backstory. The performance is beyond excellent; every voice is appropriate to the character and distinctive. If you've missed this opening volume of the series, go get it, and if you're new to Nesbo, it's the place to start.

Harry Hole

No , but I want to

no, it was too complex. I needed a break.

There has been such hype about Jo Nesbo that I thought I would give this a go... Sean Barrett did a good job with narration and trying to give depth to the characters but i found them superficial, weak and thoroughly frustrating. I persevered hoping that it would get better but when the predictable ending came I was relieved.
Not sure if it was the author - or if it was the character that bothered me - but I did not enjoy this at all..

Loved the book, the whole idea of a Norwegian discovering Indigenous Australian culture was really interesting. The thriller/mystery was compelling and the flawed hero was really compelling. The narration was a little annoying at times, although always clear.... Terrific book.

I have always wondered why American publishing provided several translated books of Jo Nesbo's great Harry Hole series, but didn't offer the first book, "The Bat". Finally, it has appeared and I couldn't listen to it soon enough. In this audiobook, Harry is in Australia investigating the murder of a young Norwegian woman, Inger Holter. The new Australian characters are unique and at times, very funny.

Regarding Harry's back-story, it was very emotional and heart-breaking. It answered so many questions I had about why Harry acts the way he does in the books that follow. I believe by beginning with this story, you can see how Nesbo continues to have Harry grow -- even if it is two steps forward and one step back most of the time. Harry's new Australian relationship, and its outcome will leave you very moved.

The mystery was very clever and moved forward at a very fast pace. Nesbo's ability to provide the most unique murder settings start with this first book. I think Nesbo's writing is brilliant. I hope he has a very long career writing about Harry Hole's investigations.

I enjoyed Sean Barrett's narration very much, but I still love Robin Sachs. I will not be disappointed with either of these narrators going forward.

Thanks, Audible, for finally offering the first book of this series. I loved it!

I would recommend others this book. Really well read and I really liked the aboriginals stories.

I would say yes. Still there were moments I thought it went a bit to slow

Never listened to him before. Thought he did well.

I'm a huge Nesbo fan and was thrilled when his first book, The Bat, became available at Audible. It is a great read and introduces Nesbo's character, detective Harry Hole. Having read all of Nesbo's other books featuring Harry, The Bat really helped give me some background and helped me understand him more. Loved every minute!

Definitely Harry. He is a complicated man and brilliant detective.

Too many to choose.

Harry goes down under in this thrill ride of an adventure.

Great narration.

Some very odd Aboriginal Dreamtime Stories. Read "Goanna " for "Iguana" , there are no natural sources of rubber in Australia and crows are not native birds. So treat the Dreamtime stories as a bit lost in translation .

I wasn't sure what to expect with this book. I was very impressed by the narration. Very impressed indeed. The story itself was good but not as meaty as I would have liked. I liked the characters but wasn't invested in them. I was looking for something along the lines of Stieg Larsson or Jussi Adler-Olsen so my expectations were rather high.

The story was too slow moving. Characters were boring. I gave up after 31/2 hours of the doldrums... Much longer if you count the rewinds...

Yes

No he was to slow and monotone for me. he and the story kept putting me to sleep. i had to rewind constantly.

Harry....

Very disappointed, I wanted so to like the series...

Plot tedious -- local lore inserted to justify location - not up to par for the author.